Vacuum cleaner



wf'c. REED fvAcUUM CLEANER Filed Aug. 4s, 1958 2 sheets-sheet 1` Nov.21, 1939.

w. c. REED VACUUM CLEANER Filed Aug., 8, 19:58

2 sheets-sheep 2 Inventor. Waler eed.

Patented Nov. 21, 1.939

' l UNITED sTATi-:s

PATENToFFICfE e vAcUUM cmANEa l Walter C. `Reed, North Hollywood, Calif.Application August s, 193s, serial 'Na Vstatic 11 claims.

This invention relates generally to aspirators such as may be used invacuum cleaners, particularly of the type adapted to be attached to theexhaust pipe of an automobile and to be operated' .l by a vacuumproduced by the exhaustlgases passing therethrough. However, while theinvention is particularly adaptable to such use, it is not necessarilylimited thereto,l and is to beregarded broadly as relating to'aspirators generally.

Vacuum cleaners of the type to which the present invention appertainsare characterized by employment of an aspirator operating on an injectorprinciple for creating the suction in the exible hose leading to thevacuum cleaner nozzle. The

15 present invention deals particularly with a vacuum 'cleaner of aninjector type, and has among its objects: Y

To provide an injector type vacuum cleaner adapted to draw a relativelylarge volume of air when the nozzle opening is relatively unrestricted,as in cleaning relatively porous materials or in cleaning `deep cracksand crevices, andwhich is automatically operative to create asubstantially increased vacuum when the nozzle is closely applied todensely woven or napped fabric.

To provide an improved coupling device adapted for effecting a tightcoupling and seal between the end of the exhaust pipe of the automobileand th vacuum cleaner; To provide an improved vacuum cleaner nozzlehaving selective openings oi different shapes adapted for cleaningdiiierent parts of the automobile;

To provide. an improved dust collector and separator; and

To providev an injector type .Vacuum cleaner of simple and improvedconstruction and of imcomprises a body forming' a tandemarrangement ofinjectors.' The usual exible vacuum cleaner hose has connection to bothof these injectors, but the connection to the` second injector iscontrolled by a suitable checkvalve, preferably a exible ilap valve.When the vacu cleaner nozzle is closely applied to the s ce beingcleaned, the suction communicated by way oi the entrance to the firstinjector is such as to cause said nap valve to close, so that-a highdegree of suction is communicated to the' nozzle. When the nozzle ismoved somewhat away from the sur- Ii'ace being cleaned, more air isdrawn through-the nozzle, thus relieving the' suction previously hold-(CL 23o-95) ing the ap valve closed, at which time the latter opens anda large volume of air is drawn by the two injectors acting inconjunction. l

With this preliminary discussion in mind, 'the invention Will be bestunderstood by referring now 5 to the following detailed description of apresent illustrative embodiment thereof, reference-being directed to theaccompanying drawings, in which:

Fig. 1 is a longitudinal section through the f vacuum cleaner or thepresent invention;

Fig. 2 is a transverse section taken onv broken line 2--2 of F18. 1; y

Fig. 3 is a transverse section taken on broken line 3,-3 of Fig. 1; l

Fig. 4 is a transverse section taken on line I-4 15 of Fig. 1; e

Fig. 5 is a section through the dust separator taken on line I-S of Fig.1; Fig. 6 is a bottom plan view oi' the vacuum cleaner. nozzle, taken asindicated by arrows 6-8 20 of Fig. 1; and

Fig. 7 vis a detail section of the nozzle taken as indicated by lines1-1 of Fig. 1.

In the drawings numeral I0 designates the body ofthe vacuum cleaner,numeral Ilvthe end oi the 25 exhaust VPipe o t .an automobile, numeral!!the flexible vacuum cleaner hose, numeral i3 the vacuum cleaner nomlecoupled to the Vend oi hose i2, and numeral il a preferred type ofcentrifugal dust separator and collector coupled to the dislso chargeend of vacuum. cleaner i0.

-Body l0 will be seen to bev hollow-and to comprise, in the specicembodiment here chosen for illustrative purposes, .two halves Illa andIllb tted together in substantially air-tight relationa5 ship to form ailuid conduit, as for example by means of the joint indicated at IB inFigs. 2, 3,` vand 4. The two halves ot the body are here shown assecuredk together by means o1' screws IB passing through lugs i1 and i!formed integrally 40 with body members lila and Ilb, and cement ispreferably used on the engaging surfaces of said members to insure anair tight nt. Body members |0a and iilb are preferably die-cast of somesuitable light but strong alloy, such as an alumi-A. 45

num alloy. .A

, The rearward or attachment end of body l0 has a cylindrical portion20, o! a diameter somewhat larger than the diameter of exhaust pipe i I,formed with an enlargement 2l at its extreme 50 rearward end, saidenlargement 2| having an inwardly turned ilange 22. the inside diameterof which is of somewhat greater diameter than exhaust pipeli. f'

Placed inside bodyportion 20 is a nexible pres- 55 sure-sealing couplingor 4Spa'iir `24, preferably 4formed of fiexibleirubber. 'Coupling 24 isin the form of a forwardl'yconverging tube 25, Ahaving at its:reanwari'end a bead or external annular ange 26 confined within annularrecess 21 formed inside body enlargement 2 I. Extending forwardly fromi'iange or bead 26 is a tapered ap 28, which fits snugly within bodyportion 26.

When the vacuum cleaner is to be attached to the exhaust pipe, it issimply slipped on over the end of the pipe, as indicated in Fig. 1,rubber tube 25 being stretched outwardly somewhat from its normal dottedline position to the position illustrated in full lines. snugly embracedby the coupler. When the exhaust gases are being discharged from pipe IIthrough the hollow body of the device, the pressure created by thepresence of these gases acts on tube 25 and flap 26, pressing themtightly against exhaust pipe II and the inner surface of body portion26, and thus eecting a tight seal between body I6 and the exhaust pipe.

Forwardly of cylindrical portion 2Il, the body of the cleaner has aconical, forwardly converging portion 3l, leading to a constrictedthroat at 32.

Forwardly of throat 32, the body is formed with ai forwardly diverginginjector section 34, and at the forward end of injector section 34, thebody is oiset outwardly, as at 35, forming a second and enlargedinjector section 36. The forward or discharge end of the latter iscoupled, as by means of coupling 38, to the intake tube 39 of dustseparator and collector :generally designated at I4.v

Formed integrally with body I is a tubular suction tube 40, thelongitudinalaxis of which converges, in a forward direction, with thelongitudinal axis of injectors 34 and 36. Thev tapered rearward endportion 4I of this tube 40 is received within the enlarged end portionof vacuum cleaner hose I2, as indicated at 4I. Tube 46 communicates byWay of a comparatively restricted passage 42 with the restricted throat32 of injector 34, while the forward end of said tube communicates byway of passage 43 with the rearward. end of second or enlarged injector`36, in the manner clearly illustrated in the drawings.

Formed on the forward end of tube 40 is an annular shoulder 45 providinga seat for a flexible ap valve 46, preferably formed of rubber, and

extending forwardly of shoulder 45, around saidv valve, are wallportions 41 and 48 forming the aforementioned passage 43 opening to therearward end of second injector 36. Flap valve 46 has a tab 46areceived'and tightly clamped in a slot 50 adjacent annular seat 45 (seeFigs. l and 3), and is adapted to operate between the closed and openpositions shown in full and dotted lines, respectively. When the cleaneris not in operation, this flap valve assumes the closed or full lineposition shown in Fig. 1.

Nozzle 4I3 has a discharge tube or neck 60 coupled at 6I to the end offlexible tubing I2. The body of the preferred nozzle shown in thedrawings is of an elongate shape, open at the bottom, and formed at thetop with a tubular portion 62 connected at 63 to discharge tube 60. Therearward sidev 64 of the nozzle continues straight downwardly fromtubular portion 62. The forward portion of the nozzle is defined byfaforwardly extending, downwardly sloping wall 65, which merges with sidewalls 66. A transverse dividing wall 61 extends between side walls" 66,from a point just below the tubular upper end portion 62 of the nozzledownwardly and for- The exhaust pipe is thus.

wardly, parallel to wall 65, to the bottom of the nozzle. This wall 61-divides the'nozzleinto two passageways 16 and 1I.

Dividing Wall 611s formed with a seat 12 for a flexible valve 13 adaptedto be moved toA the full line'or to either of the dotted line positionsillustrated in Fig. l. For the purpose of so actuating' valve 13, amanual operating member 15 is provided, which, as here illustrativelyshown, comprises a wire having an inner portion 16 embedded in the valve13, a` portion l'l pivotally mounted in the side wall of the nozzle, andan exterior handle portion 16. l

The full line position is the normal position of the valve, and in thisposition both passages 16 and 1I of the nozzle are eiective. When valve13 is moved to its left hand dotted line position, passage 1I is closedand the forwardly extending passage 16 is open. vln this position, thenozzle is effective for reaching and cleaning areas which areinaccessible to the entire nozzle. The suction is of course somewhatgreater at this 'time than with both passageways 'lll and il open. Whenthe valve is thrown toits right hand dotted line position, passage 16 isclosed and passage 1I open. Only theA rearward. portion of the nozzle,that is, the portion of the nozzle back of dividing wall 61, iseffective at this time, but the sucl tion is again somewhat greater thanwith both passages open.

Operation of the vacuum cleaner is as follows: The exhaust gas streamdischarge by exhaust pipe II passes through constricted throat 32,injector 34, and injector. 36 in succession. The constriction at 32produces suction that is communicated through passage 42 to suction pipe4|! and hose I2 leading to vacuum cleaner nozzle I3. Assuming thatnozzle E3 is applied closely to the surface being cleaned, as forexample, assuming the nozzle to be closely applied-to a napped surface,a comparatively high vacuum is developed at relatively low air flow. Thevacuum so developed within pipe 66 is sufficient to hold flap valve 46closed at this time. Thus, under such conditions, the cleaning action ischaracterized by high vacuum and relatively low volume of air.

By applying the nozzle less closely to the surface being cleaned, andthereby relieving the restriction at the mouth of the nozzle, a greatervolume of air is drawn in through the nozzle and through hose l2 andpipe 46. Under these conditions, the pressure in pipe 46 becomes higherthan the pressure within second injector 36, so that rubber flap valve46 is moved to its open position, shown in dotted lines, allowing airAto be drawn not only into rst injector 36 by way of passage 42, but alsointo second, enlarged injector 35 by way of passage 43. Thus, under suchconditions, the cleaner pulls a relatively large volume of air atrelatively low vacuum.

The vacuum cleaner of the present invention is thus capable of twotypes'of action. vWhen the nozzle is passed over densely wovenupholstery, the flow of air is decreased and valve 46 closes, causinginjector 36 to operate alone, and creating the high vacuum necessary toremove deep-seated dust. When used on more porous material, as incleaning sand and gravel from deep racks and crevices, the air flowsfreely into the nozzle and valve 46 opens, bringing both injectors intoaction and thus developing the largevolume of air ow necessary for thistype of cleaning.

I have illustrated la preferred type of dust separator and collector forreceiving the dusthigh suction in saidsuctlon ge when flow. 'of air intosaid passage is relatively restricted.

be substituted, if desired. In fact, it is quite feasible to operate thevacuum cleaner without the use of a dust collector, injector 36 undersuch conditionsV discharging to atmosphere. Use of 'the dust separatorand collector is thus optional.

The illustrated dust, separator and collector has two tangent, cylindricchambers 30 and 8|, connected by parallel side walls 82 and 83. Theaforementioned inlet tube 39 coupled to vacuum cleaner I0 communicateswith, the interior oi' cyindric chamber 80, entering in a tangentialdirection, as illustrated in Fig. 1. Circular gas discharge openings 34are formed in side walls 82 and 83 coaxial with cylindric chamber 80,and a removable glass cover 83 isl provided for one side of dustcollecting chamber 8i.

Extending between'cylindric chambers, 80 and` 3|, in substantialcontinuation of circular chamber side wall 38, is' a wall 90,' whichhowever .is lowered or oset somewhat outside pointed wall portion 9|dened by the intersection of the circular linterior surfaces of thechamber walls. Wall 90 terminates somewhat short of wall portion 9|,thus leaving an entrance opening or slot 92 for dust travelling aroundthe interior periphery of chamber 80 whereby such dust may be divertedto collection chamber 3|.

Dust and gases discharged from the vacuum cleaner enters cylindricchamber 80 and' travels in a circular path therearound, as indicated vbythe arrows; The dust being the' heavier, is thrown to the outside, andaccordingly passes through slot 92 into dust collection chamber 3l.

The gases iinally escape by way of openings v84.

Byshaping inlet tube 39 in the manner illustrated, the circularlytravelling dust and gas within cylindric chamber 80 are prevented frominterfering with-the entrance ow through and from said inlet, and` infact are caused to aid the entrance flow from said inlet into thecasing.

It is to be understood thev present invention is useful in applicationsother than in vacuum cleaners adapted for connection to exhaust pipesofautomobiles, and in fact is not necessarily limited tov-vacuum cleanerapplications. The injector means may of course be operated by i anypressure uid.

It will be understood the drawings and description are to be consideredas merely illustrative ci.' rather than 'restrictive on the inventionconsidered in its broader aspects, since various changes in design,structure, and arrangement may be made without departing from theappended claims.

I claim:

1. An aspirator comprising a hollow lbody having a pressure iiuid inletat one end and an outlet at the other end, a nrst injector and a secondinjector arranged in tandem between said v inlet and outlet, a suctionpassage having oneconnection with the throat of the iirst .injector anda second connection with the throat of the second injector, said passagebeing adapted for connection of a vacuum cleaner hose and nozzle,.'

a check valve controlling'said second connection adapted to open byreason of suction developed by the second injector when iiow of air intosaid passage is relatively unrestricted, and adapted to close by virtueof development oi relatively 0f the 2. An aspirator comprising a hollowbody having a pressure uid linlet at one end and an outlet at the otherend, a iirst injector of a given size and aV second injector oi' alarger size arranged intandem between said inlet and outlet, asuction-passage having one. connection with the throat of the iirstinjectorand a second connection with the throat of the second tion of avacuum cleaner hose and nozzle, a

adapted to open by reason of suction developed by the second injectorwhen ow of air into said passage .is relatively unrestricted, andadapted to close by virtue of development of relatively high suction insaid suction passage when ilowV of air into saidpassage is relativelyrestricted.

`3. Anaspirator comprising a hollow body having an inlet forA iiuidunder pressure, a rst injector having a constricted throat receivingpressure iiuid from .said inlet, a second injector oi larger4cross-sectional area having a throat merging with and receiving iuidfrom the discharge end of said rst injector, means forming an airpassage adapted for connection of a vacuum cleaner hose` and nozzle, apassageway forming a communication between said air passage and theconstricted throatof the first injector, a second passageway forming acommunication between said air passage and the throat of said secondinjector, and a check valve controlling said last mentioned passagewayadapted to 'open by virtue o f suction developed by the second injectorwhen flow of air into said air passage is relatively unrestricted, andto close --by virtue of development of relatively high suction in saidpassage when flow of air -into said.L

'check valve controlling said second connection j merging with `andreceiving iluid from the diss charge end of said nrst injector, meansforming an air passage adaptedi'or connection oi a vac- -uum cleanerhose and nozzle, a passageway forming a communication between said airpassage and the constricted throat of the viirst injector, a secondpassageway forming a communication between said air passage and thethroat oi said second injector, a check valve adapted to control saidlast-mentioned passageway and to seat by movement contraryto thedirection of `travel of -the air throughsaid passageway, and a seat forsaid check valve.

5. An aspirator comprising a hollow body i'orming an inletfor iiuidunder pressure, the walls forming said body converging from said inletto a constricted throat.' then diverging to'an enlarged outlet, asuction tube, means forming a passageway between said suction tube andsaid constricted throat, means forming a passageway leading from saidsuction tube and opening inside said diverging walls at a point locatedforwardly of said constricted throat, a check valve.

controlling said last mentioned passseway'and a seat ior` said checkvalve, sald'check valve beling adapted to go onto said seat bymovewalls, said check valve being adapted to open by virtue of suctiondeveloped within said diverging walls, and to close against said suctionwhen the lib suction inside said suction tube rises to a prede- A.termined value.

7. An aspirator comprising a hollow body forming an inlet for huid underpressure, the walls forming said body converging from said inlet to aconstricted throat, then diverging to an enlarged outlet, a suction tubeopening inside said c diverging walls at an intermediate point betweensaid constricted throat and said enlarged outlet,v

means forming a passageway between said suction tube and saidconstricted throat, a check valve controlling the opening between saidsuction tube and the interior of said diverging walls and a seat forsaid check valve, said ohecir valve and seat being so arranged that thecheck valve goes onto its seat by movement contrary to the direction ofair flow through said suction tube.`

8. An aspirator comprising a hollow body forming an inlet for uid underpressure, the walls forming said body converging from said inlet to aconstricted throat, then diverging to an enlarged outlet, a suction tubeopening inside said diverging walls at an intermediate point betweensaid constricted throat and said enlarged outlet, means forming apassageway between said suction tube and said constricted throat, avalve seat around said suction tube forwardly of said passageway leadingto said restricted throat, said valve seat facing away from the air owthrough said suction tube, and a check valve adapted to 4g seat on saidvalve seat.

9. An aspirator comprising a hollow body forming an inlet for uid underpressure, the walls forming said body converging from said inlet to aconstricted throat, then diverging to an enlarged outlet, a suction tubeopening insidesaid diverging walls at an intermediate point between saidconstricted throat and said enlarged outlet, means forming a passagewaybetween said suction tube and said constricted throat, a valve seataround said suction tube forwardly of said passageway leading to saidrestricted throat, said valve seatfacing away from the air ow throughsaid suction tube, and a exible ap valve adapted to seat on said valveseat.

10.` An aspirator comprising a hollow body forming an inlet for iiuidunder pressure, the walls forming said body converging from said in letto a constricted throat, then diverging to form a rst injector, thenbeing oset outwardly to provide a sharp increase in cross-sectionalarea, and then diverging to form a second injector leading to a nalenlarged outlet, a suction passage opening within said diverging wallsjust forwardly of said onset, means forming a passageway between saidsuction passage and said constricted throat, a check valve controlling-iiow of'air from said suction passage into said second injector, and aseat for said valve facing away from the air flow through said suctionpassage.

ll. An aspirator comprising a hollow body `forming an inlet for iiuidunder pressure, the

walls forming said body converging from said inlet to a constrictedthroat, then diverging to form a rst injector, then being offsetoutwardly to provide a sharp increase in cross-sectional area, and thendiverging to form a second injector leading to a iinal enlarged outlet,a suction passage openlng within said diverging walls just forwardly ofsaid offset, means forming a passageway between said suctionpassage andsaid constricted throat, a flexible nap valve con trolling flow of airfrom said suction passage into said second injector, and a seat for saidvalve facing away from the air ow through said suc tion passage.

WALTER C. REE.

